Splat Force III: Bolton's Reign; Chapter 16

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W E L C O M E ! ! !

This is Nomad! I'm back today with a new Chapter of Splat Force III: Bolton's Reign!

We are now in the final quarter of the story, folks, and things are only gonna get more intense from here!

Last week's Chapter was an action-packed one which ended in the loss of a major character, I'm not gonna say who it was but if you know, you know. In addition, a few of the characters have now shifted gears and abandoned their allegiance, again if you know, you know.

Of course, this Chapter will be a short follow-up on the last one in which everything slows down to catch up with the characters. We will see them all cope with what happened in their own ways.

So without further ado, let's get into this!

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(Chapter Hub)

C H A P T E R  1 6 : C H A N G E O F H E A R T

The remaining heroes had returned to base. Upon entering, Alyssa grabbed a blue medical chair from the top left corner of the main room next to the stairs and rushed it over to the left side of the desk. Rex was laid down on it. Bobby walked up to him and held his palm over Rex's stab wound

"This is going to sting for a couple of seconds, but you'll be okay!"

He assured before freezing the womb.

Rex yelped in pain as his stomach stung from the coldness of Bobby's gifts, Alyssa held his hand. Samantha, Platinum and Peter stood around him with worried looks over his pain. A few seconds later, however, the womb was finally stabilised.

"There, all should be good now!"

Bobby muttered. Like the others around him, Bobby's mood had been soured by the battle. However, it wasn't the battle that scarred him, it was what happened beforehand. Nevertheless, he tried to smile through the stress. Peter glanced at Bobby and angry frowned at him.

Now that the pain began to fade, Rex leaned back on the seat and looked to the ceiling.

"I-I could've saved him, Magnus, I-I could've saved him!"

He murmured weakly as his lips trembled. Everyone around him fell silent. Ami, Emily and Blue fell silent across the room by the target range, overhearing the Commander's sorrowful words.

"He believed in me, a-and I let him down!"

"I-It's not your fault! What happened to Magnus was out of your control!"

Samantha tried to assure him whilst fighting back tears over the supposed death of her friend.

Rex exhaled loudly and hard as he smacked the back of his head against the seat head.

"I can't do this..."

He whispered before climbing out of the medical chair to his right.

"I need a minute alone..."

"Rex! You need to sit down, you aren't in fit condition yet!"

Alyssa exclaimed as she, alongside Peter, Samantha, Bobby and Platinum came to his need or at least tried to.

"Yes I am!"

Rex replied confidentiality as he contained to walk away towards the front door. On the way, he reached for his shield on the desk to his left and grabbed it.

"Rex! Ugh!"

Alyssa groaned as her husband exited the building through the front door. She understood the pain and grief that Rex was going through but she still knew that he needed to rest. She turned around and looked down at her daughter, who looked at her in worry.

"Dad just wants to be on his own right now, okay Platinum?"

"It's okay, I understand!"

She replied. Her mother gave her a warm smile before the small group split up into different parts of the room, with only Bobby and Peter left in the middle of the room.

Bobby tried to walk away but was stopped by Peter who held onto his left shoulder.

"I want to make one thing straight with you. You are not gonna touch Blue again after what happened out there!"

Blue overhead her father's words from the target range.

"Oh no..."

She whispered to herself.

"Look man, I didn't want to put her through it, nor did I ever attend to kill her!"

Bobby told him, moving in closer to him.

"All I had to do was stand my ground and wait for Bolton to-"

S L A M ! ! !

In all his rage and frustration, Peter lashed out at Bobby, punching him in the face.

"Dad!"

Blue yelled as she ran to the scene.

Peter tried to dash at Bobby but was held back by both Alyssa and Samantha.

"She was screaming in fear, crying for freedom! Why didn't you listen!"

"Dad, I'm okay!"

Blue yelled, running in front of the pair of them. Peter settled down and looked at his daughter with a sad face.

"It's okay, I wanted to be there. It was the pressure of the situation which made me scared. Don't blame him!"

Hearing her daughter's reassuring words helped Peter calm down. He exhaled softly.

"I-I'm sorry, I just...I've lost too much, I don't want to lose my baby girl too!"

Blue hugged Peter softly as both Alyssa and Samantha let go of him.

"You're gonna lose me, Dad. You never will!"

Blue assured as the pair of them went quiet. Wanting to leave them alone, Bobby walked to the top left side of the room and walked up the stairs onto the second floor. He leaned against the small wall bars and looked down at the floor below him.

"I'm gonna get some air, you lot behave, okay?"

Alyssa announced as she too walked up the stairs. She walked ed Bobby and walked onto the balcony. As she walked outside, Samantha looked to the ground, closed her eyes and sighed. Seconds later, she began to slowly follow behind her Commander.

At the target range, only Ami and Emily stood alone, with Emily leaned against the wall, visibly stressed out. Ami stood to her left.

"Everyone's fightin' now..."

She said to the pink-haired Inkling.

"If Magnus was here then he'd somehow find a way to end it all."

"I miss him too..."

Ami sighed.

"But he wouldn't want us to be stressed out and upset over his loss."

"Easy for you to say, Ami..."

Emily muttered as she began to think of most of the memories that she and Magnus had shared together.

"I was an asshole to him, for no reason. I was always stubborn with him, very disobedient and overall, I was just being a dick to him for no reason. I want to make it all up with him, but I can't, it's too late..."

Realizing that words simply weren't enough to cheer up the grieving girl, Ami went in for a short hug. Emily didn't wrap her arms around her. Instead, she stood still, her body going numb as she felt every possible emotion.

Across the room, Platinum looked around and saw nothing but stress and depression, two of her least favourite emotions. She concluded that she too needed to get away from it all to not lose herself in the pain and suffering. Platinum began her walk to the front door.

Outside, Rex stood by the short wall and looked out into the sea, his shield in his left hand. When he closed his eyes, all he could think about was the leader of the Legion of Fire's disfigured face, caused by himself. He looked down at the shield and had flashes of him smashing his face in with it playing on repeat in his head. After almost a minute of flashes, it became too much for Rex. He screamed painfully as he threw what remained of his broken shield into the sea. Now, it can do no more harm.

"Dad?"

Platinum called out from behind.

Rex's body stopped for five seconds upon hearing his daughter's voice. He felt awful that she had to witness his small meltdown. The Commander slowly shifted around and looked at her.

"Hey Sweetheart, sorry you had to see that..."

"No, it's okay! I get it!"

Platinum assured him.

"No, you don't. It's a lot more complicated than you think."

Rex responded. Platinum walked up to the small wall and stood to her father's left, looking up at him.

"People need heroes, they need someone to look up to, they need someone to help them sleep better at night. What they don't know is that even the heroes have their rough moments, even they have a dark side."

Rex looked out to the sea and exhaled in bitterness as Platinum continued to listen.

"I made a mistake today, one that cost the life of a defenceless young man. It's a mistake that will haunt me for the rest of my life..."

He said tremblingly. Rex looked away from the sea to look into his daughter's sparkling eyes.

"All I wanted was for you to be safe. I wanted to get you back no matter the cost of it all. But I went too far and now, I don't think I deserve you..."

"No, you're wrong!"

Platinum spoke up, not liking the last words that came out of her father's mouth.

"You've always been there for me, Dad. Every night, I feel safe because I know you'll always protect me and love me, and nothing will ever change that!"

Rex's lips trembled and tears went into his eyes. He glanced back at the sea, not wanting his daughter to see him cry. After nearly ten seconds, he had successfully managed to hold back the tears. He looked back to Platinum, kneeled to her level and hugged her tightly, not wanting to let go.

From the balcony above, Alyssa watched the pair of them hug with a wide smile on her face. As her husband and daughter walked inside of the warehouse, she was ed by Samantha.

"H-Hey Alyssa, can we talk?"

"Of course, darling!"

Alyssa answered before shifting her body around to face her.

"What's on your mind?"

Samantha had to prepare herself for the next words that came out of her mouth. She was already tearing up.

"All this time when you and Rex were away, I thought you were dead. I was adamant about it, I thought you both died when we lost communication with you. But Magnus...Magnus held onto the hope that you two would one day come back. He remained optimistic even during the uncertain days, and I-I...I took him for granted..."

She muttered as she began to break down and cry. Alyssa gently stroked her left arm to calm her down.

"I'm sorry for not believing in you as he did! I-I wish I had his optimism and his faith in you! I-I-"

"Hey, hey, hey!"

Alyssa whispered as she quietened her. She began to wipe the tears from her face.

"We should've come back sooner to let you know we were alive, but the risks were too much. I'm so sorry, Samantha. I wish we gave you hope sooner."

Samantha couldn't speak, her voice trembled whenever she tried to. All she could do was hug her tightly and cry into her shoulders. Alyssa rubbed her back softly to settle her down as she too began to grow emotional, feeling guilty that she wasn't there when she needed to be.

M E A N W H I L E E L S E W H E R E . . .

The Syndicate hadn't stopped walking since the confrontation. They had been walking down the road to Inkopolis City from the castle. Eventually, they finally arrived at the outskirts. Led was in front, followed by Melissa and then Bruce, who held onto the weeping Magnus Lang.

All Melissa could hear was Magnus' silent crying, it was slowly becoming too much for the Telepath.

"We should stop, Led, we've been walking for a while."

"We can't stop Mel, he'll catch up."

Led responded calmly as he continued walking, not looking back at her.

Melissa went quiet for a short moment and looked back at Magnus, whose face was drenched in both blood and tears. Melissa scoffed in frustration before turning back to Led.

"Led, if he wanted to come after us, he would've done so already! You know especially that he isn't one to give up like that!"

At last, Led stopped and looked at the sky before groaning in frustration.

"Five minutes, that's all we'll get for now."

"Thank you, Led."

Melissa said with a soft smile before turning to Bruce and Magnus. Bruce carefully lowered Magnus to the hard ground. Melissa began to inspect each of the cuts Bolton had given him on his right arm, stomach and knees. Afterwards, she looked at the deep, wide cut on Magnus' right cheek.

"The cuts on your arm, stomach and knees will heal in time and fade. The same cannot be said for the cut on your cheek, however, that will stay with you for the rest of your life, as much as it pains me to say it..."

More tears fell from Magnus' eyes as his body continued to shiver.

"H-How a-am I-I gonna tell m-my family?"

"I'm afraid with that much damage, they might have know eventually, as much as you don't want them to."

Melissa answered, only making Magnus more upset now that he had no other choice than to tell them about his real life.

"I have scar too."

Bruce said to Magnus in an attempt to make him feel better, using his fins to point at the two scars both on his chest and over his right eye. Unfortunately, it didn't change Magnus' emotions. Instead, he gave him an unsteady nod.

Melissa stood next to Led, who had his arms crossed, looking ahead to the city ahead of them.

"Any ideas on where to go, Mel?"

"No, none of us have a clue."

Melissa said out loud.

A few feet apart from Led and Melissa, Magnus managed to overhear their conversation.

"Y-You can g-go to the Splat Force base. They'll understand!"

He suggested, grabbing the attention of both Led and Melissa.

"After what happened back at the castle, I doubt it."

Led pouted.

"N-No! Once they see me then they'll understand, t-trust me, please!"

Magnus pleaded.

The duo looked at each other for approval. After Melissa nodded with approval, Led looked back to Magnus.

"Okay, where is it?"

B A C K W I T H T H E S P L A T F O R C E . . .

Everyone was back inside, all still processing. Bobby still thought about what Peter had said to him, and he still felt the punch. The pain in Rex's stomach had eased. However, everyone else was still in a sour mood.

The team was then alerted by the front door opening. General Swannack walked into the base, both hands held behind his back. Rex glared at him. The General looked over to the Commanded and saw Platinum by his side.

"I see that you've rescued the girl successfully."

"Yeah, I wouldn't worry too much, General, we only lost one of our own trying to get her back!"

Rex yelled both aggressively and sarcastically as he stood up from the medical chair and walked to the General, standing right in his face.

"He was only a kid, General! If you were there then maybe he'd still be here right now!"

The General looked away from Rex's angry eyes so he could look around the room. Most of the team had very little idea of who he was. The only others who recognised him were Alyssa, Peter and Bobby, the three of which looked tired and beaten.

"I am truly sorry, Mr Allen. As I said before, I wish I was able to help, but-"

"You were low on men and Harlow is still lost after all of this started. Yeah, yeah, yeah! I know! At least two or three would've been helpful against him, that way we might've stood a better chance and Magnus would still be here!"

Rex exclaimed. His words had managed to make the General frown.

"Who are the R.A.I.C meant to be anyways? Heroes? Well if they're heroes, where have they been when the city they have sworn to protect with their lives needed them most?!"

The room went into an uncomfortable, heart-pounding silence. The General turned away from Rex, still holding his hands behind his back. In frustration, Rex clenched both of his fists, preparing to punch the General. Just as he was about to run at him, however...

Z A P ! ! !

S T O M P ! ! !

Loud noises came from outside of the warehouse, noises that were recognisable to everyone in the room.

"No, it can't be!"

Rex exclaimed, confused as to how they knew that they were there.

"I'll take care of this!"

Ami said as she ran to the front door, taking her dualies out of their respective straps.

"Ami, wait!"

Samantha yelled as she followed after Ami, who had already ran out the door. Not long later, everyone else followed.

Upon exiting the building, Ami turned right and dashed to the gate, seeing Led, Melissa and Bruce. She aimed both dualies at them fearlessly, ready to avenge Magnus.

"You have guts coming here after what happened!"

She yelled. Little did she know that her world, alongside the world of the others, would suddenly turn upside down.

"W-Wait, don't fight!"

Magnus called out from Bruce's arms. He tucked himself up and revealed himself to not only Ami but the rest of the team.

Ami was so shocked that she dropped both of her dualies. She could not believe her eyes.

"Magnus?! But how?!"

"T-They saved me from Bolton!"

He answered.

Ami didn't know what to believe. It was all too shocking for her, why would they turn their back on anyone, let alone Bolton Vulcan?

"How can that be possible, they could never-"

Led approached Ami and interrupted her.

"Look, if we were still on Bolton's side, your friend would be dead."

He told her coldly, wanting the confusion and never-ending questions to be cut short.

"Do you have a medical station in there, your friend is hurt, badly."

Ami glanced at Magnus and fully saw the damage done to his face, her eyes widened.

"Come with me!"

She said before running back to the base, past the others who had come out as backup.

As Magnus came closer into view, the rest of the team went from thankful over him being alive to mortified over the state of him.

"Oh my cod, Magnus!"

Alyssa cried out as Bruce stopped walking and stood in front of her. He gently placed Magnus onto the floor, allowing Alyssa to pick him up and cradle him in her arms. She, alongside the rest of the team and the Syndicate, rushed inside. Had a new alliance just been formed between both the Splat Force and the Syndicate?

T O  B E  C O N T I N U E D . . .

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T H X  F O R  R E A D I N G ! ! !

Thx for reading the sixteenth Chapter of Splat Force III: Bolton's Reign! I hope you enjoyed this short, yet calmer Chapter when compared to the previous long, action-packed ones. Next week's Chapter will be another character-focused one, however, some surprise faces will show up, so stay tuned for that! Until next time, stay safe out there! ^^

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